Meet the speakers

Alex is a veterinarian with a background in wildlife health and conservation, and now works to champion alternative food systems that simultaneously enhance ecosystem health, and bring positive outcomes for humans, communities, and farmed animals alike. Alex is a co-founder and Director of Unravel Your Food Community Interest Company.

Caroline enjoyed nearly twenty years as a small animal GP vet, gaining her Certificate in Small Animal Medicine. Seeking a broader animal welfare role she moved to the RSPCA, where she was Chief Veterinary Officer for seven years. She is the founder of Pet Lighthouse, a quality of life consultancy service for pet owners.

Caroline is a Fellow of the RCVS and a trustee of the BVA Animal Welfare Foundation.

Professor Carri Westgarth is Chair in Human-Animal Interaction at the University of Liverpool with a passion for understanding the relationships we have with our pets. With a background in animal behaviour and dog training she has trained in veterinary epidemiology and human public health. Her research interests focus on the implications of pet ownership for human health and wellbeing, but also how owner management of their pets can impact animal welfare. Both quantitative and qualitative research methods are used to tackle research questions around topics such as dog walking, dog bites, pet obesity, pet ageing, imported rescue dogs, and owner wellbeing. Her expertise on understanding and changing the behaviour of dog owners is sought by many organisations wishing to prevent dog bites and promote ‘responsible’ dog owner behaviour, such as her work as a consultant for Royal Mail. She is also a Full Member of the Association of Pet Behaviour Counsellors and founder of the Merseyside Dog Safety Partnership. In her spare time Carri teaches dog training classes, and previously was a professional Assistance Dog Instructor and worked in animal rescue.  Her practical experience in many areas relating to animals, combined with a multi-disciplinary academic perspective, gives unique strength and relevance to her expertise.

Charlotte is the Associate Professor in Animal Welfare and Behaviour Science at Royal Veterinary College (RVC). She is a biologist who has specialised in animal welfare science, having trained at University of Oxford for her BA and DPhil and at University of Edinburgh for her MSc. She leads RVC’s BSc in ‘Animal Biology, Behaviour, Welfare and Ethics’, and she conducts original research on animal welfare. Her research themes encompass a wide range of species, and include deepening understanding animal capacities for sentience, boredom and pleasure. She also conducts applied research to help make real world improvements to animal handling and husbandry and to breed animals for better welfare. She was a trustee of BVA’s Animal Welfare Foundation between 2019 and 2025.

Ed van Klink is a retired veterinarian with over forty years experience predominantly in veterinary public health, veterinary policy, animal disease control and animal health management. He has worked in Zambia as a government vet, and in the Dutch Ministry of Agriculture. He also worked in veterinary public health and veterinary policy projects in a number of countries across the globe, such as Suriname, Vietnam, North Macedonia and Bulgaria. He spent the final years of his career at the University of Bristol as senior lecturer veterinary public health, later shared with a research position at Wageningen Bioveterinary Research in The Netherlands. He became involved in rewilding when the Oostvaardersplassen development required veterinary management and policy input in view of expressed  animal health and welfare concerns.

Farm vet and academic Dr Gwenllian Mair Rees BVSc (Hons) PhD AFHEA FRSM FRCVS has been elected to the post of Junior Vice President. BVA’s Welsh Branch President for 2023-2025, Gwen is well known among the Welsh farming and veterinary community as the project lead for Arwain DGC’s Veterinary Prescribing Champions Network, a Welsh Government-funded national antimicrobial stewardship programme, for which she was recognised with an RCVS Fellowship earlier this year. Dr Rees is one of the founding academics at Wales’ first School of Veterinary Science, at Aberystwyth University, where she now works as a lecturer. Gwen is also the Veterinary Development Lead at Welsh independent business development company Mentera, a trustee of the Animal Welfare Foundation, and sits on the Welsh Government’s Bovine Tuberculosis Technical Advisory and AMR in Animal Health Delivery groups.

Jenny qualified as a vet from the University of Edinburgh in 2002. After some years in mixed practice, she took a PhD in epidemiology and virology at the University of Liverpool. Following another spell in mixed practice, she joined the University of Nottingham in 2010, initially as Research Fellow in Shelter Medicine at the Centre for Evidence-based Veterinary Medicine, then Assistant Professor in Shelter Medicine. She is a founder and honorary member of the Shelter and Charity Veterinary Association, co-editor of the BSAVA Manual of Shelter Medicine, and in 2012 founded Vets in the Community, a student-led service providing free veterinary care for homeless people. She joined VetPartners in 2021 as Clinical Research Manager, which involves supporting practitioner-led and practice-focussed research across species and disciplines. Her hobbies include hanging out with her family, more research (pet ownership and homelessness; infertility and miscarriage in veterinary professionals), running and reading old detective novels. She accepts that she is a big nerd.

Karen Hiestand is a European and RCVS veterinary specialist in animal welfare, ethics and law and is a lecturer in veterinary and animal ethics at the Royal Veterinary College, London. She originally trained as a vet at Massey University in New Zealand, and she has wide ranging experience of first opinion mixed practice, shelter medicine, animal charities and voluntary work, particularly dog and cat population management programs. Having always been focused on how to improve animal welfare, she re-entered education after 10 years in clinical practice and gained an MSc in Applied Animal Behaviour & Welfare, a BSc in Psychology, an MA in Medical Ethics & Law, a PhD in Psychology – investigating the role of animal empathy in human-companion animal relationships. She is a Diplomate of the ECAWBM (AWSEL) and alongside her role as an educator, she continues to volunteer in the animal welfare sector, as a trustee at International Cat Care, chair of the Animal Welfare, Science, Ethics, Law and Forensics Association (AWSELFA), and holds committee positions on welfare and ethics advisory boards at both RVC and RSPCA.

Liam has held a lifelong passion for all animals, but does admit to finding aves particularly captivating. Having spent a decade working in small animal and exotics practice in central Scotland, Liam’s career pivoted when he joined the team at the Scottish SPCA’s National Wildlife Rescue Centre in 2018, where he is now Senior Wildlife Veterinary Surgeon. Here, Liam’s caseload is made up of wildlife casualties from all over Scotland, around 70% of which are birds. This has allowed him to pursue his interests in avian radiography, orthopaedic surgery and parasitology, as well as affording him the opportunity to milk at least five species of (dead) wild mammal. Alongside his clinical work, Liam also holds a British Trust for Ornithology S-permit (trainer) and goes bird ringing when time permits, admitting that he has been obsessed with birds since he was 9 years old. At work, he uses skills gained from both facets of his life to ring a substantial number of rehabilitated birds, generating critical post-release data. Liam is an advocate of evidence-based veterinary medicine and strives to contribute to the evidence base available to wildlife vets whenever possible and strongly believes in pragmatic care for wild animals.

Liz is a 1988 ‘Dick vet’ graduate with a varied career in small and large animal first opinion practice.

For many years she was a co-owner of a small animal Veterinary Hospital in Somerset. Alongside this role, she successfully completed a Clinical Doctorate which ultimately led to RCVS Specialist status in Wildlife Medicine (Mammalian). She now works in a variety of British wildlife related roles, including as an advisor to a large wildlife rescue charity and in academic teaching. She also locums for a small animal emergency service.

Liz is a Past President of the British Veterinary Zoological Society and a Fellow of the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons.

Mike Radford is Reader in Law at the University of Aberdeen. He has taught and lectured on animal law widely, in addition to working extensively on the development of animal welfare law and policy with politicians, officials, veterinarians, NGOs, and other interested parties. Mike is presently a  member of the Scottish Animal Welfare Commission, a trustee of the UK Centre for Animal Law (A-LAW), the Universities Federation for Animal Welfare and the Humane Slaughter Association, and is a long-standing visiting lecturer at both Edinburgh and Glasgow Vet Schools.  Mike was appointed OBE in 2008 for services to animal welfare law.

A crazy cat lady and self-confessed study geek, Nikki has been an RVN since 2000. With her fingers in many pies, she splits what little time she has between working as the Cat Advocate and consulting nurse for a small animal practice in Fife Scotland.

Not satisfied with gaining her first undergraduate degree at 50, she completed a Post Graduate Diploma in Clinical Animal Behaviour at the University of Edinburgh, and opened Fife’s first vet-practice-based Clinical Animal Behaviour referral clinic at her workplace, currently juggling behavioural appointments with nursing consultations.

She has been keeping a British Veterinary Nursing Association Council seat warm, with an Officer role during her third and fourth year on Council. She is also is a Trustee with the Animal Behaviour and Training Council.  She enjoys spreading her knowledge through lecturing and podcasting, while taking on a third degree at University of St Andrews, looking at the human end of the lead (or cat carrier handle).

And then when all that doesn’t consume her brain, her husband and kids fry it gently and keep her on her toes. Sleep is optional….

Paul serves as Chair of the British Wildlife Rehabilitation Council, leading strategic initiatives to advance professional standards, governance, and best practice across the UK wildlife rehabilitation sector.

He also manages a well-established licensed wildlife rescue and rehabilitation centre in Aberdeenshire alongside his partner, ensuring that the wildlife of North East Scotland has access to a professionally led rescue service.

With 14 years’ experience in the field, Paul’s career began in primate rescue within the UK before progressing to senior managerial roles at wildlife rehabilitation centres in Ethiopia and Costa Rica. His return to the UK during the Brexit transition provided first-hand insight into the structural, regulatory, and operational challenges facing the British rehabilitation sector.

In addition to his operational leadership, Paul delivers specialised training for veterinary and wildlife professionals and provides consultancy to governmental and non-governmental organisations on rehabilitation practice, licensing frameworks, and sector development. His work focuses on strengthening regulatory clarity, improving welfare outcomes, and supporting practitioners to operate to the highest professional standards.

Sara supports landowners, land managers and project managers to rewild, and has worked at Rewilding Britain since 2020. She supports practitioners through the Rewilding Network — the first of its kind in Britain. Her role focuses on engaging with Network members and leading our strategy to upscale rewilding.Sara is also working on producing practical resources, supporting innovation, data collection and setting up connections across Britain to help facilitate knowledge exchange. Sara has a strong background in rewilding, mammals, species reintroductions, land management and restoration plans.